As School Year 2025–2026 begins today, June 16, the Department of Education (DepEd) expects over 27.6 million students to return to classes nationwide.
In an interview with Dos Por Dos on Monday, Assistant Secretary for Strategic Management Roger Masapol warned that persistent shortages in classrooms, teachers, and learning materials continue to pose serious challenges.
“Inaasahan na papasok ang more than 27 million public and private school [students],” said Masapol.
“Pinakamataas na narating natin bago ang pandemic nasa 28 million. Noong pandemic, bumagsak ng 26 million at bumalik ng 27. Medyo nagslow down ang ating population growth pero tumataas pa rin. Pero hindi siya ganun kataas kumpara sa previous years,” he stressed.
He noted that while the country’s population growth has started to slow, the number of students continues to increase.
Classroom Crisis
Masapol further shared that one of the biggest issues DepEd continues to face is the massive classroom backlog.
“Ang backlog of classroom malaki po talaga. Ang ginagawa po ng DepEd, number one, ini-increase po natin yung allocation sa voucher para bawat isa service contracting sa ating mga private schools para more or less ma-accommodate 'yung expense sa public school,” Masapol said.
“Pangalawa, pinipili natin yung mga bata na tinatawag nating independent learners — sila 'yung mga magda-distance mode of learning o kaya virtual na 'yung kanilang modality,” he noted.
Masapol said that while blended learning will still be used, face-to-face classes will remain the dominant setup for most students.
“Magkakaroon pa rin ng combination na learning mode pero most likely face-to-face na,” he said.
Currently, the government has the capacity to build only around 1,500 classrooms annually, while the nationwide classroom deficit stands at approximately 165,000.
He added that a positive outcome from the pandemic was the opportunity to test and improve distance learning methods.
“Isa sa magandang nangyari noong pandemic sa sector natin ay na-test natin yung effectiveness ng mga distance learning modality,” the undersecretary emphasized.
Private sector tapped for classroom construction
To help address the infrastructure gap, Masapol said that DepEd Secretary Sonny Angara plans to involve the private sector through Public-Private Partnerships (PPP).
“Ang proposal natin na nag-agree po ang presidente — i-tap na natin ang private sector kasi mabilis silang mag-construct in a large scale. Ibig sabihin, within the term of President Marcos, maraming maiko-construct pag private sector po ang tinap natin,” he stated.
He said the government is targeting the construction of buildings on available government land and is seeking coordination with local government units (LGUs).
“May problema po tayo sa lupa, kaya nga po hindi tayo magtatayo kapag 'yung lupa ay parang hindi malinaw. Kaya po ang immediate namin sa mga LGU parang matching po ba — o sige, magtatayo kami ng building sa inyong lugar, magbibigay kayo ng lupa,” Masapol explained.
The idea is for private developers to build classrooms on government-owned land. The government will then amortize the construction cost over 10 years.
Masapol shared that the standard classroom, measuring 63 square meters (7x9 meters), costs about ₱3.5 million to build, excluding equipment such as TVs, desks, and chairs.
“Ngayon po ang tumatakbo ay nasa ₱3.5 million ang isa. May pisara pero wala pang mga additional TV, upuan, lamesa — sinisiguro namin na magta-timing ang mga gamit,” he said.
“Computation ng DPWH po ang classroom cost,” he noted, citing the classroom construction costs are based on Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) estimates.
Despite the durability of older structures such as “Marcos buildings,” DepEd policy allows them to be replaced once they reach 25 years in age.
“Ang policy ng DepEd kapag naka-25 years na 'yung building, puwede na pong palitan.”
Aside from classroom shortage, schools still face challenges in acquiring textbooks and computer laboratories due to procurement failures.
“Totoong may kakulangan talaga ng mga textbooks kasi po may mga problema tayo sa procurement. Marami pong nagfefailure sa document text books. Pangalwa, may kakulangan pa tayo sa mga tayo sa mga computer laboratories, computer set natin,” he said.
Shortage of teachers
DepEd is also facing a shortage of around 56,000 teachers, although the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) has approved 20,000 new teaching positions, with 16,000 of those already being filled by schools.
“Medyo okay tayo ng konti sa teacher kasi yung 20,000 natin, that reduces our shortages to 30,000. Pero kulang pa rin. Pero at least very responsive ang government sa pag-address ng ating mga kakulangan.”
Currently, entry-level salary for public school teachers now stands at ₱28,000 per month.
Despite the setbacks, DepEd is hopeful that through increased collaboration with the private sector and strong government support, increased voucher allocations, and strategic coordination with local governments.
